Pieces: Of Sparks and Petals
by Hokama Sekushiru
Summary: Companion to 'Pieces,' by Raining Moon Song; all credit for the original idea goes to her. After a sudden incident on a stormy winter's day, two girls find themselves wound more tightly into what seems an impossible and convoluted conflict than they ever could have imagined.
1. Storm

**A/N: I would just really like to thank Raining Moon Song, aka Tory, for her amazing fanfiction called Pieces, which I am addicted to and I ship the implied main pairing for life, and everyone should really go read it. Like, right now. Tory, I know this can't ever do Pieces justice, but by gosh I am determined to try my best. I hope you like it, and thank you so much for letting me use your idea as inspiration!**

"Throw me that can of Mountain Dew."

"No."

"Come on! It'll take like, two seconds! You can put the freaking controller down for _two freaking seconds_. Just toss me the can!"

"It'll take you the same two seconds to walk over here and _get it yourself_; I am _trying_ to kill Sephiroth!"

My sister gives me the most long-suffering look I have ever seen, her dark brown eyebrows narrowing into a pout over her chocolate-colored eyes as I struggle, once more, to block the several meteors hurtling high-speed at my—or should I say, _Sora's_—head.

"God _darn_ it!" I growl, flicking the PS2 joystick severely to the right, my body leaning just a little as I watch the figure on the screen frantically running out of Masamune's way.

"Lisi, I swear I'm gonna kill you. Throw me the _freaking can_."

I ignore her for another second, but it's too late anyway; her words distracted me and now Sora is falling backward in slow motion, the familiar tone accompanying his digital death.

I turn around and glare at my sister, hoping that my dark black eyeliner is making the expression as severe as I want it to be.

"I hope you're happy; you just made me die."

"Toss me the can and I _will_ be happy," she says, completely ignoring Sora's floating body on the screen.

I stick my tongue out balefully and chuck the can of Mountain Dew at her; infuriatingly enough, she catches it without so much as a stumble. My darn sister, always the graceful one while I go stumbling around like a retarded elephant on stilts.

"_Thank_ you," she says pointedly, returning to the bed and picking up her Heart no Kuni manga again as she pops open the Mountain Dew.

I sigh and roll up off my beanbag chair, dropping the controller into the warm space that my butt just vacated. She glances up at me, raising one eyebrow curiously. "Where're you going? I thought you were trying to kill Sephiroth."

"I'm taking a break," I growl. "If anyone asks, I'm out killing Heartless with a stick."

"Ha-ha," she replies sarcastically. "Where're you actually going?"

I give her a long-suffering look of my own, already pulling my giant, fluffy warm black coat (a birthday present from our Aunt Lindsay a couple of years ago) over my arms and zipping it up the front.

"I'm going for a walk, you dip. Five blocks. Not far."

"By yourself?" She looks at me doubtfully.

"I'm seventeen years old, Zanna. I can take care of myself. And anyway, I'm not going far, I already told you; I'm just going over by Storm's house. Sheesh."

"Didn't you look at the weather forecast? There's some kinda big storm coming." She's still looking at me with that infuriating one-eyebrow-up expression, which is _really_ starting to annoy me right about now.

"So I'll be home before dark. What are you, my _mother_?" I make sure to emphasize the last word, and am gratified when I see her wince.

"Just be careful, you idiot. If you die in a tornado then I'm stealing all your Final Fantasy games."

"You can have Nine, I don't like it that much anyway," I say, shrugging and turning toward the door. "And we don't _get_ tornadoes in December… in Massachusetts."

She rolls her eyes at me. "You know what I mean, butt-face. Just be careful. And tell Storm and Mrs. Rose I said hi."

"Yeah, yeah," I reply, already on my way out.

"And make sure you-!"

The door shuts on the sound of her voice.

I hate admitting that Zanna's right, but the freezing wind almost takes my breath away when I step out of the door of the two-story house that we share with our dad and our dog Meghan. Shivering a little, I shove my hands deep into my pockets and start down the slick and frozen sidewalk, my boots slipping a little on the icy concrete as the gale whips my bright violet hair around my face.

It's only five blocks to my best friend Storm Rose's house, but by the time I've walked a block and a half, I can't feel my fingers, toes, _or_ nose, and I swear that snow's blown into at least forty crevices in my clothes that I didn't even know were there.

_These are the times I wish we'd stayed in Georgia instead of moving up here…_

We moved up here a little over three years ago, after Dad and Mom split up. Mom stayed in Georgia with our little brothers, and my older sister and I came up to Massachusetts with Dad and Meghan. Most of the time I don't regret it; I never would have met Storm if we hadn't moved, and we live closer to Aunt Sam now, which is nice, but on days like today, I really miss the south-Georgia-a.k.a.-north-Florida sunshine.

_And my flip-flops. Oh, God, I miss my flip-flops. _

I wiggle my frozen toes inside my snow boots, just to make sure I can actually still move them. I've made it three and a half blocks now, and I'm just entering the intersection of Lowell Street and Baker Street, a couple of houses away from where my other friend Zane lives (yeah, she's actually a girl… her parents are weird, though; she calls them by their first names and her family's really odd). I can see headlights in the road, crawling through the veil of snow at a miserable twenty miles an hour, instead of their usual brisk residential-area thirty. The golden flashes refract off the snowflakes, creating dull shimmers in the almost-opaque air.

As I'm about to pass the intersection by, however, I see something that makes me pause, squinting across the road. What looks like two figures in long black trenchcoats with deep hoods are hurrying up the block on the other side of the road, keeping close together, I guess for warmth. I can't tell whether they're men or women from this far away; the snow and their coats completely obscure any kind of details.

It's actually the coats themselves that I'm staring at; I can't really tell, but from here, they almost look like…

_Nah… cosplayers in Massachusetts? No one even hosts cons in Massachusetts…_

All of a sudden, both figures turn and sprint out into the road during a lull in traffic, running full tilt toward the sidewalk where I am standing.

I can't hold back a small shriek of surprise, though the wind immediately tears it away from my mouth. What kind of idiot do you have to be to run _into_ oncoming traffic?

I hear several cars honking their horns as their headlights illuminate the two shapes careering across the street, their coat hems flapping crazily at their heels.

_Oh my God… I have to be crazy…_

"Come on!" I scream, waving my arms at them. "Run! Over here!"

I don't know if they hear me or not, but I guess something must alert them to my presence, because the one in the lead, the taller one, I can now see, turns slightly and is now running straight toward me. The smaller one behind quickly follows, and they dash past the remaining few yards of road to almost collapse on the sidewalk in front of me, their chests heaving as they gasp in the freezing air.

"What were you _thinking_?!" I demand, not even caring that I've never met these people in my life, and they could be weirdo stalker pedophiles just waiting to find some kid to snatch. My adrenaline's racing just from watching them run across the street, and my heart is pounding right out of my chest. "You could have gotten hit, like, a _million_ times!"

They don't answer me, of course, both of them too out of breath to manage any words at all, only gasps.

While I wait for them to collect themselves, I take a moment to study their clothing. Up close, I can see more clearly the distinctly huge double zipper and shiny silver chain beneath the high neck that clearly distinguishes their coats. The taller figure is wearing regular tall black boots over black pants beneath the coat, leading me to believe that he's a man; the muscular, athletic-looking build is leaning me that way too. His friend's coat is pulled snugly, but not too tight, over what is clearly _her_ frame, and she's dressed in ankle boots with pointy heels that I can imagine were _not_ comfortable to run in.

_Holy crap… they actually _are_ cosplayers…_

"Uh… you guys lost or something?" I ask, having to shout to make myself heard over the steadily increasing wind.

The first one, the guy, looks up, though I still, creepily enough, can't see his face beneath the deep shadow of his hood.

"Something close to that, I suppose," he replies, raising his own voice a little.

I shiver just slightly, my eyes widening at all the _oh my God Re: Chain of Memories feels and holy crap this guy's a good voice mimic or something…_

"Well… er… you wanna come with me?" I'm not sure exactly what's pressing me to help them out; it's not like I know them. It's actually kind of creeper-ish, now that I think about it, especially because I really am curious about their costumes.

"We would appreciate that, thank you," he answers slowly, his voice seeming to flow from beneath his hood like molten caramel, and giving me the shivers all over again.

_Holy _crap_, that's a good imitation…_

"Okay… um, this way," I say, gesturing lamely with my hand down the street toward where I know Storm's house is. "Follow me, please."

I start walking again, and I'm shocked, pleased, and also slightly terrified when they actually _do_ follow me.

_What have I just gotten myself into…?_

We arrive at Storm's house ten breathless minutes later, stumbling numbly up onto her front porch. I raise one shaking finger and mash the doorbell several times, knowing that her mom will know it's me.

Mrs. Rose answers the door moments later, smiling a little when she sees me. "Oh, Lisi, hello!" she says brightly. "Did you come over for a—" and then her eyes light on the two people behind me, and one blonde eyebrow shoots straight up. "And… who are…?"

"Friends of mine…" I pant, shivering uncontrollably. "Just moved here… not used to cold… wanted to introduce them to Storm."

"Ah… I see." Mrs. Rose blinks, looking slightly taken aback, but not really suspicious. "Do they have names?"

My mind goes blank for just a second; I didn't ask their names, and they didn't tell me…

"Lu," I say in an instant, as my cogs shudder back into motion. "He's Lu, and she's Arlene."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Lu and Arlene," Mrs. Rose says, her smile returning. "All of you, please come in; good grief, Lisi, it's _freezing_ out! Hurry up, come on!"

Gratefully, I slide past her and into the blessedly warm interior of my best friend's house, watching as the two figures do the same behind me. Mrs. Rose shuts the door behind us, walking back to the living room.

"Storm!" she shouts, sticking her head into the stairwell. "Lisi and some other friends are here!"

"Coming, Mom!" I hear my friend's familiar voice reply, muffled by a couple of walls.

There's a slamming sound, and then the sound of feet as Storm sprints down the stairs.

While I wait for her, I turn around, glancing at my two new 'friends.' They're both slowly pulling down the hoods of their coats, looking around with pensive expressions. I fight the urge to stare at them, feeling my traitorous eyes going wide anyway.

The taller figure is a guy, like I thought, but he's got to be the most androgynous guy I've ever seen. His sapphire-blue eyes are framed by long, delicate lashes, and his facial features are angular and angelic; a long, straight nose and full lips accented by perfectly-carved cheekbones. His feathery hair is the most unique shade of petal pink I have ever seen; it falls silkily to his shoulders, seeming almost like a mop of flower petals growing from his head.

His friend is a girl, though that's not really a surprise. Her face is small and heart-shaped, bright teal eyes looking out of a face a little less angular than her companion's, but no less beautiful or delicate. Her blonde hair is slicked back into almost a helmet on top of her head, except for two tendrils that stick up at a curve, almost like bugs' antennae.

I have to remind myself to breathe.

_Holy crapola… those have got to be the best cosplays I have ever seen in my entire freaking life…_

"_Whoa_," I hear suddenly from behind me. Turning, I see Storm also staring at my friends, her hazel eyes going wide as she beholds the two people standing in her living room and removing their sodden coats. Her burgundy hair is tied back in what she likes to call her 'day-ponytail,' though I don't really know what the difference is between it and a night-ponytail. It's just a Storm thing, I guess.

"Who're they?" she asks, gesturing at them.

"Uh… Storm, meet Lu and Arlene," I say, my eyes flickering toward the kitchen.

She glances that way at well, and instantly understands when she notices her mom.

"Oh, right… nice to meet you guys!" she says cheerily. "I'm Storm Rose." Looking back to me, she says, "You guys should come upstairs, so we can _get to know each other._ Besides, I'm playing a game I think you'd probably like."

I smirk; in a whisper, I ask, "Replaying C.O.M. again?"

She sticks her tongue out, turning to walk up the stairs.

I turn around and glance at the cosplayers, waving an uncertain hand at them. "Well, uh… come on."

They exchange a look, shrug, and follow after me, up the stairs.

I close the door when we get into Storm's room, locking it behind the final two entrants. Storm's settled back into her moon chair, holding her PS2 controller and attempting to ward off the attacks of several Soldier Heartless with a series of calculated card tricks.

I can see the two cosplayers watching Storm curiously as she thumbs the joystick back and forth, pressing buttons with expert dexterity. I've always hated her for being better at Re:CoM than I am, but I make up for it by having beaten KH2 on Proud Mode more times than I think she ever will.

"You guys play Kingdom Hearts, right?" I ask them, trying to break the silence. "Re: Chain of Memories? Or Days, I guess, but they don't show up as much in that…"

"_Play_ Kingdom Hearts?" The question sounds so _odd_ in his calm, unwavering voice.

"Or I guess maybe you could have read the manga?" The amended statement sounds more like a question, and I shrug uncertainly. "Those are seriously awesome cosplays for only having read the manga, though…"

Now they both look bewildered, which is confusing me, as well. If they're trying to stay in character, they're doing a pretty freaking awesome job of it, but now isn't really the time, especially if they're lost.

"Uh… okay, forget that," Storm says, seeing my dilemma and shaking her head. "How about you just tell us your actual names?"

They glance at one another, and then briefly back at the screen before replying.

"My name is Marluxia," the guy replies evenly.

"My name's Larxene," his female companion answers, her voice high-pitched and lilting. It's not nearly as annoying as I always thought Larxene's voice was in the game.

Storm and I both raise our eyebrows; these guys are _seriously_ committed to their characters, I guess.

"O…kay then," Storm says, shaking it off and shrugging. "So… Marluxia? Where're you guys from? I didn't know there were any cons up here…"

"Cons?" Marluxia repeats, looking confused. "I do not believe I understand to what you are referring."

"You know… conventions?" I jump in here, getting more confused by the moment. "Like, a giant party where everyone dresses up and acts nerdy?"

"That's not really what a con is," Storm says, giving me a slightly injured look.

"In the briefest sense, it kind of is," I reply, waving the look off. We can have a fangirl definition war later.

"Anyway," Storm says, shrugging. "Where are you guys from? It can't be around here…"

"We have come from the World That Never Was," Marluxia answers her calmly. "Well… Castle Oblivion, if you wish to be technical, but our assignment originated from the World That Never Was."

Holy God, are they _actually_ serious with this?

I glance at Storm, a little worried now. We haven't been able to get any real information out of these freaking cosplayers, which means we have absolutely no way of getting them back home, and there's a giant freaking storm coming right over Lowell, like _now_.

This looks like it's going to be more of a problem than I thought.


	2. A Place To Call Home

"Heh, can you guys just give us a sec?" I ask them, dragging a frustrated hand back through my purple bangs.

Marluxia shrugs and turns to begin having a conversation with Larxene (_wow_ I really have got to stop mentally calling them that because I know it'll confuse me later on).

I turn to Storm, my expression completely exasperated. "Do you hear this?"

"Yeah," she says, nodding and looking equally frustrated. "It's like they actually think they _are_ the characters…"

"I wonder if they're like, schizophrenic or MPD or something," I murmur, in a lower voice.

"_Both_ of them?" she asks skeptically.

"Eh… you never know?" But she's right; the chances of that, especially for _corresponding characters_, is pretty low.

"So… what do we do with them?" I ask her. "I mean, we have no idea where they came from or what their names are, and we're about to have a freaking blizzard. We can't just send them back out in it; they'd freeze to death."

"Well, they can't stay here," Storm says, immediately shaking her head. "My mom's pretty tolerant of crap, as far as parents go, but there's no way she'd let two strangers stay in her house."

I cross my eyes, agitated. I already know that it'd be a doomed wish from the start if I asked my dad to let them stay with us; unlike Storm's mom, he is tolerant of _no_ crap. Plus, he doesn't like me very much; my sister's his favorite child, even though both of them always try to deny it. I know why, but it still stings.

"Maybe we could call Zane?" I suggest. "I mean, her parents are kind of… lenient."

Storm snickers a little. "That's generous. And if that doesn't work, I guess we can always just call the homeless shelter or something."

"Well, that's a little rude; they might not be homeless," I argue. Their cosplays certainly look well-made enough for them not to be homeless wherever they're from.

"Well, they're homeless here," she replies. "But let's call Zane first."

I turn and make my way over to the desk phone, shivering when the two cosplayers' eyes immediately fixate on me, as if they are measuring my movements. It makes me feel weird and analyzed, like a science experiment on a table.

Shaking off the freaky feeling, I pick up the phone and dial Zane's number, holding it to my ear… only to get the busy signal.

"God _darn_ it," I hiss, sliding the phone back into its cradle. "The lines must be down from the snowstorm."

"Well, do you have your cell?" she asks.

I shake my head. "No, I left it at my house. Do you have yo—never mind." I break the sentence off when I remember what happened to Storm's phone last month. I never knew that car tires could smash a phone into that many pieces.

"Uh, _noooo_," she says pointedly, glaring at me for a second before dropping the look and sighing. "Well, maybe the Internet's still up; try IM'ing her."

I nod and sit down at Storm's laptop, opening it up and quickly typing her password. Both of us know the other's laptop passwords; it's a secret that we've kept well-guarded since we became best friends.

I go right into my Yahoo, and click Yahoo! Messenger and look for Zane's little glowy-bubble-thing that means she's available to chat; sure enough, it's there, right beside her customized Active status message: "Hi, chat me up!"

Bubbly and perky; typical Zane. She's the perfect complement to Storm's sarcasm and my cynicism.

I click on her bubble to activate a chat window, and then begin typing my message.

**tahokama:** -yo, dude. whassup?-

**zanyzane06**: -Lisi! :) hai! what's up?-

**tahokama:** -you will never believe what just happened to me and Storm.-

**zanyzane06:** -okay, what?-

**tahokama:** -okay so i was out taking a walk, and i was gonna go to storm's house-

_zanyzane06 is typing…_

**zanyzane06:** -in a blizzard? are you insane? wait scratch that yes you are insane. continue-

**tahokama:** -LOL. anyway I was walking and it was freezing, duh. and i got to the intersection of Lowell and Baker and then these two idiots in coats were walking on the other side of the street and they decided to just run right into the street-

**zanyzane06:** -oh my god! did they get hit?-

**tahokama: **-no they didn't get hit, thank god, or i probably would have thrown up. they got all the way across and they ran right to me, and Zane I swear to darkness that they're wearing Org XIII coats-

**zanyzane06:** -what?! are you SERIOUS?!-

**tahokama:** -i am totally srs bro.-

**zanyzane06:** thexsil! oh my god!

**tahokama:** -LOLOLOL. but im not done yet okay.-

**zanyzane06:** -please continue, mam, I am riveted-

**tahokama:** -LOL. okay anyway so i actually talked to them and the one dude i swear sounds just like marlu-

**zanyzane06:** -*squee*-

**tahokama:** -so yeah i picked them up and took them to storm's with me and then they came in and took of their hoods and I freaking swear they're marlu and larxene cosplayers-

**zanyzane06:** -holy crap what are cosplayers doing in Lowell Massachusetts?-

**tahokama:** -i know dude, and theyre seriously the best freaking cosplays ive ever seen. but that's not even the weirdest part-

**zanyzane06:** -there's weirder?-

**tahokama:** -either theyre super committed to their chars, or they actually think theyre marlu and larxene-

**zanyzane06:** -…whoa. *o*-

**tahokama:** -yah. but actually I chatted you cuz i have a question for you-

**zanyzane06:** -what ish?-

**tahokama:** -do you think your parents would let the cosplayers stay at your house for a bit? they won't tell us where theyre from and me and storm are getting worried cause of the blizzard, but our parents wont let them stay-

**zanyzane06:** -brb squeeing-

**tahokama:** -LOL you haven't even asked yet-

**zanyzane06:** -kk two seconds-

**tahokama:** -k-

I turn away from the screen and back to Storm, who's been peering over my shoulder this whole time, watching the conversation. She's smirking just like I am; all three of us are fangirls, but Zane is possibly the biggest, nerdiest Marluxia and Zexion fangirl on the planet.

"Well, she's asking," I say. Storm nods and turns to the cosplayers.

"Lisi and I are asking our friend Zane if you guys could stay with her until we figure out how to get you home," she says. "Would that be okay with you?"

Marluxia glances at Larxene, and then nods. "That would be satisfactory, yes."

I give a little sigh of relief; at least they're not picky. And maybe Zane will have better luck figuring out who they actually are; she's a little better with people than either Storm or I.

I hear the little 'bloop' sound that means Zane's come back and sent me a message; quickly, I turn back to the screen.

**zanyzane06: **-okay i love my parents.-

**tahokama:** -lol im guessing they said yes?-  
**zanyzane06:** -uh huh they said anyone who needs a home is welcome in our house for as long as they need-

**tahokama:** -that's great! well i'll tell them then-

**zanyzane06:** -okay! i'm gonna clean my room! *squeeing*-

**tahokama:** -LOL we'll be over as soon as it quits snowing enough for me to walk or mrs rose to drive-

**zanyzane06:** -kk cya then! 3-

**tahokama:** -cya 3-

I sign off of Yahoo! Messenger still grinning, and spin Storm's desk chair back around to face the group in the room.

"We appear to have secured lodgings for our guests," I proclaim in my snootiest, silliest voice. Something about this whole situation just seems to call for humor. This is probably the weirdest day of my entire life.

Storm grins too, looking slightly relieved. "Oh, awesome! So they'll be staying with Zane, then?"

I nod. "Yup, that's the plan. You guys okay with that?" I glance at them again, privately marveling once more at the accuracy of their cosplays. I wonder how much gel it took for Larxene to get her antennae to stand up _that_ perfectly.

Marluxia nods again. "I have already expressed our satisfaction, but I give you our thanks, as well," he says quietly.

I feel the darn shivers starting up and down my spine again, and quietly tell them to go away.

Suddenly, just when everything appears to be working out, we hear Mrs. Rose's voice from downstairs.

"Lisi, my cell phone just rang and it's your father! You had better come down here right now!"

Immediately, all my happy drains away, leaving me cold and hollow and scared inside. I've been gone for quite a while now; Zan must have told Dad I went out.

Storm gives me a sympathetic look. "I'll come, too," she says quietly. Turning to Marluxia and Larxene, she says, "You guys come downstairs, too, I'll see if I can get you some food."

They nod, and the four of us head down the stairs.

When we reach the bottom, I walk slowly and heavily over to where Mrs. Rose stands, holding her cell phone with tight, disapproving lips, and take the phone from her, holding it to my ear. Hesitantly, I ask, "Hello?"

"Liseth, is that you?" My father's voice is loud and demanding, and I wince as it crackles over the crappy connection.

"Yeah, Dad, it's me," I sigh.

"_What_ in the world possessed you to walk five blocks to your friend's house in a blizzard?!" He's shouting at me immediately, and I have to hold the phone a little away from my ear. "You could have been hit by a car, or kidnapped, or slipped and fallen and gotten hurt! Do you ever think about _anything_ you do?!"

I can feel the angry tears starting in the corners of my eyes, but I don't reply, waiting for him to finish his rant.

"No, you don't," he says, answering his own question. "You never think about these things, Lisi! You're rash and impulsive and hot-headed and stupid, just like your mother!"

I wince a little at that; it's not the first time that he's compared me to my mom. She really broke his heart with the divorce, and he's never really gotten over it.

"And now you're making me have to call Mrs. Rose and bother her because you decided to make a stupid decision!" Still yelling. God, why does he always have to yell into the phone? "Why can't you be more like your sister?!"

Well, _ouch_. I wipe away the solitary tear that trickles down my cheek at that. He always says that Zanna's not his favorite child, yet whenever I screw up in his eyes, which is often, he never fails to compare me to her.

"What do you have to say for yourself?" he demands.

I know that this is my cue to speak, but I wait just a second, building up my emotional dams, holding back the tears that want to come. This is something I have become exceptionally good at over the past few years. When I feel confident enough in my control to speak, I answer flatly, "I'm sorry for making you have to call Mrs. Rose. I'm sorry for not telling you where I was going. I'm sorry for going out in a blizzard."

"No, you aren't," he replies, imitating my flat tone. "This tone does not communicate apology to me, Liseth. This tone communicates disrespect."

"Well you know what?! _Fine_!" I scream it into the phone, not caring anymore if Mrs. Rose hears or if Storm hears or even if the two cosplayers hear, because I am sick and tired of this whole stupid conversation, which is really just a chance for him to unload all of his grief about my mom onto me, which is what he always does.

"_I'm sorry that Mom divorced you!"_ I scream back at him, into the phone. _"I'm sorry I can't be more like Zanna! I'm sorry I was Mom's child and that every time you look at me you see her face and that's why you hate me, but I can't help it! I have a life too and this is not fair to me and I am done, Dad! I'm done!_"

There is shocked silence, both on his end of the phone and in Storm's house, but it doesn't last two seconds before he starts speaking again, quiet and furious.

"Liseth Marie Nolan, don't you _dare_ take that tone—"

I press the 'end call' button before he can finish the sentence, quietly offering the phone back to Mrs. Rose, who seems completely numb with shock. She takes it without a word, only offering me a small and comforting rub on the shoulders as I walk past her and into the kitchen, the tears already threatening to overwhelm.

Storm and the two cosplayers are standing by the stove in silence. Storm only looks sympathetic, but both of the older figures look shocked and puzzled, their eyebrows raised slightly in confusion.

"I'm sorry," is all Storm says, quietly putting her arms around me and hugging me tightly.

I feel my barriers break; I lean my head into her shoulder and cry, as inconspicuously as I can.

"He's such a…" Storm shakes her head, apparently unable to think of a word bad enough for my father. "That's so unfair, how sad he makes you all the time, Lisi."

I shrug pitifully, unable to manage a verbal answer through my tears.

Suddenly, I feel another warm hand descend onto my shoulder; looking up slightly, I am surprised to see Marluxia standing there, a pale concern written onto his pretty features.

"Why are you crying?" he asks softly.

Well, maybe he's not as committed to his character as I thought; the real Marluxia wouldn't have given a flying fiddle either way.

"Someone hurt her," Storm says, in answer for me. Her voice is bitter, but it's not directed at Marluxia. "Someone who's supposed to love her. He hurts her very badly, all the time, in here." She puts a hand to her heart.

Larxene steps forward now, and the expression on her heart-shaped face is _definitely_ out of character for Larxene; she almost looks _sympathetic_.

"I'm sorry," she says, her high and musical voice strangely soothing, instead of annoying. "I've been there, too."

"Why does she remain with this person who hurts her, if all he causes her is torment?" Marluxia asks, his hand still resting on my shoulder. It's a little awkward because I don't really know him, but it's comforting, too, so I let it go, focusing on stemming the flow of my tears.

"It's complicated," Storm replies, shaking her head. "She kind of… can't leave."

"Ah; so she is bound." He nods, and then shakes his head. "Then I am sorry for your pain."

"Th-thanks," I sniffle, managing to be slightly amused at how formal he still manages to sound, even when he's breaking character.

He nods, and gives me a very small smile, his lips curving up only slightly. Larxene does the same.

Suddenly, the humor of the whole situation strikes me, and I start giggling through my tears.

Startled, Storm looks me in the face, looking a little concerned. "Lis? Are you okay? What's wrong?"

"N-nothing," I laugh, still crying a bit. "It's just… we're standing here narrating my life story to two people we barely know. It's k-kind of f-funny."

She looks surprised, and then she has to allow a grin. "Yeah… I guess it is pretty funny. Now, c'mon, let's have some food and cheer up. I have hot chocolate and giant marshmallows." She says this last part in a teasing singsong, grinning at me again.

"Yum, my favorite," I say hoarsely, managing a watery grin back and wiping my eyes again. This time, to my relief, no more tears come.


	3. AN: Notice

**A/N: I just wanted to make clear for all of my readers that while this story is meant as a companion to Pieces, I'm not writing it like Tory wrote Pieces. Certain people/places/events in it are close to or based on things that really happened to me, but certain people/places/events are also exaggerated or fabricated altogether. While I have had spats with my parents before, I think everyone has at some point, and I can truthfully say that my father has never spoken to me in any way similar to the story. That is not based on reality, and I just wanted to make that clear. **


	4. Car Sickness and Punishments

The snowstorm isn't actually as bad as we were all expecting; no worse than any other snowstorm that's ever come through Massachusetts in December. Once the two cosplayers get a little more adjusted to Storm and I, and Storm's mom, we find ourselves out in the living room, watching one of the Christmas specials on TV; the 'Frosty the Snowman' one. The cosplayers still act a little stiff toward us, Marluxia especially, but they treat us at least like acquaintances by the end of the hour-and-a-half movie. By that time, the snow's pretty much settled down to a routine fall, although it is still pretty windy out there.

"Guess we should walk you guys over to Zane's, huh?" I ask, glancing at Marluxia and Larxene. "The snow's settled down enough for that, I think."

Marluxia nods. "We would appreciate the transportation very much."

"Oh, _walking_." Mrs. Rose _tsks_ at us in a very matronly manner. She's kind of become like an aunt to me up here, although no one will ever replace my mom, Aunt Sam, Aunt Lindsay or Aunt Barbara.

"No one is walking anywhere. We'll take the car." She stands up and goes into the kitchen to get her car keys, shouting over her shoulder for Storm to go put some snow clothes on, which she promptly hurries off to do.

Marluxia gives me a bit of a weird look when they're gone. "Car?" he asks slowly, as if testing out the word. "I apologize, but… to what was she referring?"

I almost spit out the hot chocolate I'm drinking, managing to swallow it at the last second.

"Um… you know, _cars_," I say exaggeratedly. "You can drop your character, now, dude. I get it. Great cosplay."

He raises an eyebrow at me. "Excuse me?" I shiver a little, although his tone is not threatening.

"Okay, seriously, enough with the voice acting creepy imitation thing. You can't talk in his voice and be part of normal conversation. It just… it doesn't work." I shake my head.

Now he just looks utterly baffled, as does Larxene. Before anyone has time to say another word, though, Storm and her mom come back, dressed to the ankles and wrists in snow gear.

"Come on, time to go," Storm says. "You guys'll have to ride in back, I hope that's okay."

"… I suppose." Marluxia shrugs, still seeming confused.

I hop up, following Storm to the door and watching the two cosplayers as they follow me. From some other room in the house, I can hear a door slamming; I guess that's Rain doing something or other, but I ignore it, my head still swimming from the odd conversation I just had.

Either he was pretending really well, or he actually doesn't know what cars are.

_Maybe they're like, Amish or something_, I think to myself as we all step out into the bitingly cold, snowy air. I dismiss that almost immediately, though; Amish people would be just as clueless on Kingdom Hearts and cosplaying as they would be on cars.

Still racking my brains, I slide into the backseat of the Roses' small Toyota, squishing myself against the right window to make room for Marluxia and Larxene, who slide in beside me, gazing around the car's interior curiously.

"Pull the door closed," I say to Larxene, who still hasn't closed the Toyota's left-side door. The cold air from outside is drafting in, and it's freezing my fingers rapidly. I'm slightly irritated that they're taking the pretending this far, but whatever. Let 'em have their fun for awhile. Hopefully, Zane's parents can make some sense out of them.

Larxene leans over and yanks on the door, pulling it shut hard and almost whacking herself in the face with it. She jerks back a little, startled.

"Whoa, sorry," I say apologetically. "Forgot to mention that those are kinda heavy."

"That's… fine," she replies, still a bit surprised.

Storm hops into the passenger's seat up front, disregarding the seatbelt, as usual, even though it's snowing. The only time she ever bothers with a seatbelt is when I'm driving, even though I don't drive any worse than her mom. It's just her little way of ribbing me.

Mrs. Rose slides into the driver's side, shutting the door and starting the engine with a loud _sputter-sputter-clunk!_ Both Marluxia and Larxene look around slightly, startled by the noise.

"Oh, I apologize," Mrs. Rose says, raising her voice over the engine. "This old beater can't start up properly in the winter. We really should get a new car…"

We pull out of the driveway, skidding a little on the icy road, and then start off down the street, crawling toward Zane's house at barely fifteen miles per hour.

Storm twists around in her seat to look at us, glancing at Marluxia and Larxene with raised eyebrows. Both of them are holding onto their seatbelts tightly, and the hands not gripping their seatbelts are wound tightly together, fingers clasped. It'd be kind of cute if it wasn't so puzzling.

"You guys don't ride in cars much, do you?" Storm asks, smirking a little. I reach up, trying to flick her, but she dodges me easily.

"No, we don't," Larxene replies, looking a little green. "How much farther does this thing have to take us?"

"Zane's house is only a couple blocks down from here," I say, peering closely at her. "Hey, are you okay? Are you gonna be carsick or something?"

She doesn't answer me, but her pale cheeks tell me more than words could.

_Great… what we really need is cosplayer vomit all over the back seat._ "Um… Mrs. Rose?" I say, a little anxiously.

"Yes, dear?" she asks me, glancing in the rearview mirror.

"I think L—um, Arlene might be sick," I say. "She gets carsick sometimes."

"Oh, dear," Mrs. Rose says, looking concerned. "Well, Lisi, I'll try to go as fast as I can, but there's ice all over these roads, and I can only use the accelerator so much."

"I know. Thanks," I reply, nodding at her.

"Hey," Storm says, looking at Larxene. "You know what'd make you feel better? Food. Lots of greasy food, and some Jell-O. Green Jell-O. And—"

"Storm, cut it out." I actually do flick her this time, catching her right over the ear. "You're being a jerk."

She snickers. "Aw, come on, I was gonna stop before she actually threw up."

I roll my eyes. "Yeah, whatever. I'm sure your mom would be overjoyed if some cosplayer threw up in her car."

"Eh… true." Storm shrugs, leaning her chin on the seat and looking at Larxene, who's paler than ever now, her bright green eyes closed, leaned against the backseat cushions, her knuckles white on the seatbelt. "Dang, she really is carsick. You okay?" She directs this question at Larxene, looking concerned now, rather than amused.

"She will be fine," Marluxia says, looking a little cross with Storm. "Simply transport us to our destination."

"Jeez, okay," Storm says, holding her hands up in mock-surrender. "Just tryin' to have some fun."

"Sometimes, people don't like it when you mess with them," I say sarcastically, thumping her again.

"_Ow_! Would you knock that off?!" She rubs the back of her head, sticking her tongue out at me. "I get it, okay?!"

I snicker at her. "Just making sure."

We finally do arrive at Zane's house ten minutes later; any longer, and I think Larxene actually would have thrown up. She looks positively drained of color, and her head is leaned on Marluxia's shoulder, face buried in his coat.

"Shoot… now I kinda feel guilty," Storm says, hopping out of the car and scratching the back of her neck awkwardly, Axel-style. She comes around and pulls the right-side door open, letting me out first.

"Well, you should." I roll my eyes at her. "That was kinda mean."

"Yeah, yeah, okay, Mom," she says, rolling her eyes back. "Save the lecture for later. Let's get them inside."

We go around and open the other door for the cosplayers; Larxene is out almost immediately, wobbling a little on her black heel boots. Marluxia is a little more graceful, standing and slamming the door behind him with a _look_ at Storm.

"Thank you for the transportation," he says quietly; the civil tone, however, carries an undercurrent of steel, and I shiver slightly. He's definitely got the voice down.

"You're welcome," Storm says meekly, backing up a step or two.

Marluxia puts an arm around Larxene's shoulders as Mrs. Rose climbs out of the driver's seat, shivering slightly.

"Oh, hurry," she says, waving her hands at us. "Let's all get inside and out of this cold."

We all walk up the path toward the door, Storm and I in the lead, then the cosplayers, and then finally Mrs. Rose, pulling her coat tightly around her. Storm reaches the door first, knocking on it loudly.

It takes a few seconds, but Zane answers the door, finally, dressed in red flannel pajama pants and a blue T-shirt. Her black hair is in a messy bun, and her blue-grey eyes go wide enough to fill her face when she sees Marluxia and Larxene walking up the walkway behind us.

"Whoa," she breathes. "Are those… them?"

"Yup," I reply quietly. "And to Storm's mom, they're Lu and Arlene, and they've been our friends for a while, so try not to act weird, okay?"

She sticks her tongue out at me. "You make this really not fun sometimes, Lisi."

"Shut up and go inside," Storm says, smacking us both on the shoulders. The three of us quickly hustle inside, letting the two cosplayers and Mrs. Rose in after us.

"Dan! Molly! They're here!" Zane shouts into the back of her house.

Again, her family's weird. Dan  
and Molly Scholl are her parents, but she doesn't call them Mom and Dad; she's called them by their first names about since she could talk.

I wait, kicking some of the snow off my boots and glancing around. Zane's house is a little smaller than mine, but it's got that 'cozy' feeling that everyone thinks New England houses should have; the feeling that around every corner is gonna be a fireplace and some cups of cocoa or cider. I love the feeling that I get in Zane's house, especially because it's so opposite to the one I get in my own house.

Zane's parents come out of the kitchen, both smiling widely at the little group of us in the hall. Dan is really tall and has the same black hair and stormy eyes as his daughter, while Molly is shorter and slightly plump, and has dark brown hair and warm brown eyes that sparkle with kindness.

"Welcome," Molly says, waving. "Come on into the kitchen, you all. I have cocoa!"

"Actually, we just had some, Mrs. Scholl," Storm says. "Me and Lisi are gonna go hang with Zane, if that's okay."

"Oh, that's fine," Molly replies cheerfully. "Have fun. And I've told you before, Storm; please call me Molly."

Storm shrugs, looking a little uncomfortable, but she doesn't argue.

Mrs. Rose, Marluxia and Larxene follow Dan and Molly into the kitchen, while Storm, Zane and I head down the back hallway to Zane's room, shutting the door behind us. Her room looks very similar to mine, with a lot of bean bags and pillows and a mess everywhere, her computer chair perpetually pulled out.

"Okay, what?" Zane says, when we've finally got the door bolted. She looks excited, her eyes sparkling.

"They're delusional," is the first thing Storm says, shaking her head.

"Storm!" I smack her arm, rolling my eyes.

"They are!" she protests.

"How so?" Zane asks, looking curious.

"They think they're actually Marluxia and Larxene, or _something_," Storm gripes. "And they won't drop character. It's getting annoying, especially when they pretend not to know what cars are and one of them gets carsick."

"Aw, that sounds bad," Zane says, although her sympathy seems more for Larxene than for Storm and I.

"Yeah. Have fun with 'em," Storm says sarcastically.

"Don't worry." Zane laughs. "My parents will find out who they are. They're good with people. In the meantime, we can find them jobs or get them in school or whatever. They'll be fine here, and you won't have to worry about them."

"Good, cause if I did, I'd probably go insane," Storm mutters. "And Lis couldn't either, she's got enough to worry about."

"Why? What happened?" Zane glances at me in concern.

"Her dad called while she was at my place, and he kind of chewed her out over the phone." Storm shakes her head, clearly irritated. It always touches me, how offended she gets on my behalf. "You could hear him screaming all the way in the other room. It was awful."

Zane reaches over and hugs me tightly. "I'm sorry," she says quietly.

I shrug, inwardly glad to have such good friends. "I'll be fine. He'll cool down eventually; he always does."

"Yeah, but that still sucks." She sighs. "Anyway. You guys can go, if your mom's ready, Storm; we'll take it from here."

"Thanks," Storm says, nodding gratefully at Zane. "And tell your parents thanks, too."

Storm, Mrs. Rose and I all say goodbye to Molly, Dan, Marluxia, Larxene and Zane, waving a couple of times before walking back out and climbing into the Toyota. There's a lot more room without the cosplayers in the back, and I stretch out on the seat, ignoring the seat belt and staring up at the roof of the car.

"Now, I suppose I'd better drive you home, Lisi," Mrs. Rose says, glancing at me in the rearview mirror. Her voice is soft and hesitant.

"Yeah, I guess," I say dully, feeling my gut twist slightly at the thought of walking in my own front door.

"Would you like me to speak to your father?" she asks, after a slight pause.

"No, thanks," I say, sitting up a little and giving her a kind-of smile. "I don't want you to get yelled at, too; you didn't do anything."

"All right…" She sounds unsure, but shrugs and puts the car into gear, backing out of the Scholls' driveway. "Well, if you need me for anything, you call, all right?"

"Okay. Thanks, Mrs. Rose," I say sincerely.

"That's no trouble." She waves it off, turning the car around and starting off toward my house.

We get there a lot faster; I live closer to Zane than I do to Storm, and the snow's lightening up a bit, enough for Mrs. Rose to see clearly enough to drive. The whole time, I'm trying to plan what I'll say to my dad, though I know no explanation or excuse will be good enough for him.

_Dad, I'm sorry; I shouldn't have yelled or said the stuff I said. You can punish me, do whatever, just… I'm sorry, okay?_

I roll my eyes and flop back down onto the seat, the minutes ticking by too fast as the car creeps along toward its destination.

Too soon, we're pulling into my driveway, the beater's engine idling as Mrs. Rose pulls it to a stop.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?" she asks me softly, as I sit up and open the door, letting in the cold wind.

"I'm sure," I reply, nodding. "Thanks again for driving."

"Anytime," she says, giving me a kind smile. "You tell your father I said that you haven't done anything worth shouting about."

I give a harsh kind of half-laugh. "That'd be suicide. Thanks, though."

She shakes her head and sighs a little as I close the door, waving at them while she pulls away. Storm waves back at me, and then they're driving down the street and disappearing into the snow.

_Great… time to go face my doom._

Slowly, I turn around and walk up the front sidewalk, inhaling in preparation for my speech as my hand reaches out to grasp the freezing door handle, pulling the door open.

Dad's waiting for me in the front hallway, sitting on a chair, his arms crossed. His brown eyes are narrowed at me in clear anger, and his brown hair is tied back in its usual neat ponytail, his glasses lowered on the bridge of his nose.

"You're late," is the first thing he says.

"You didn't tell me I was supposed to be back at any specific time," I reply, sticking my own hands into my pockets.

There's a long silence between us, and we stare at each other, brown eyes to vivid blue.

Finally, he says, "When I call you and administer discipline, you do not hang up on me, Liseth. That is a sign of the utmost disrespect."

"Yes, sir." The reply is void of all tone or emotion; completely flat.

"You will, of course, be punished." He looks at me, waiting for me to beg or plead, I guess.

"Yes, sir." I don't do anything, just look at him blankly.

"Go upstairs and unplug your laptop. It's mine until I say otherwise." He raises an eyebrow at me, as if daring me to argue.

I feel a slight surge of panic and anxiety in my gut, but I manage to keep my voice level. "Yes, sir."

"Well? Go." He points a finger at the staircase, tapping one foot impatiently.

Feeling heavy and leaden with utter hopelessness, I turn and ascend the stairs miserably.


End file.
